Project Catalyst
by Anya Cavanaugh
Summary: Soul and Maka are tasked with a mission-one that involves a hundred human souls. However, things take a drastic turn when they discover a mutant weapon/meister, Ivy. Turns out, she was an object of experimentation by the infamous Probe Inc, an almost forgotten science laboratorium located underground with the intentions of rebirthing a new Kishin. REVIEW, FOLLOW AND FAVORITE :)
1. Experiment I3

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**The following events happen after Kishin Asura was defeated, however, Soul has yet to become a Death Scythe. Apologies in advance for any misinterpretations or any mistakes within the text.**

**This is my first fan fiction.**

**Enjoy.**

**- Anya.**

**Chapter 1 – Experiment I3**

The night was leaden and shrouded with dense clouds. The smirking moon, which was hardly in line of sight, harshly chuckled; an orotund noise echoing through the purple gloom.

Maka rubbed her hands across her arms, though the air wasn't cold. She has always been terrified of the moon ever since she was a child. It would always give her nightmares. And although the sun was almost the same way, at least, she always thought to herself, it was daytime. And there was light.

"Say, Maka," Soul said, walking close by her, "has it ever occurred to you that this is our first time carrying out a mission in Death City?"

"Now that you mentioned it, you're right, Soul," Maka said and shook air off of her shoulders.

"You seem uneasy. What's bugging you?" Soul asked, stuffing both of his hands into his pockets.

"Huh?" Maka said, a slight panic rising in her chest. "Nothing, really."

"I hear a 'something' somewhere in there."

"Yeah, b-but it's not important."

"Tell me anyway."

"No."

"Why not?"

"You'll laugh at me." Maka looked up just in time to see Soul grinning and that made her mad. "Just cut it out already! I don't want to talk about it! It's way too embarrassing."

"Okay, okay," Soul said, raising both hands in front of him in defense. "I wasn't teasing you or anything, you know!"

"Hmph," Maka folded her arms across her chest and pouted sulkily. She was not convinced.

"Fine, fine, we'll talk about something else." Soul's hands went back to the pockets. "Brief me on this mission. You were too in a rush. I couldn't catch everything you told me before, besides the fact that we'll be exploring the outskirts for the first time."

Maka grunted under her breath. _Sheesh. Patience, Maka._

"We'll be inspecting a derelict depot," she said as evenly as possible, "where hundreds of human souls lurk, and our job is to find the culprit. There was a signature on the back of the mission notice. A so-called 'Dr. Feelgood'."

"Feelgood, huh?" Soul stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Fishy."

"My thoughts exactly. I'm sure there are plenty of other, better pen names to choo—" Maka stopped dead in her tracks and raised a hand to halt Soul, her body suddenly rigid.

"Maka, what's wrong?" he said, concerned.

"Souls," she said gravely. "There _are _hundreds of them. They're not far off. Come on!"

They broke into a sprint, winding down maze-like cobblestone paths, their paces matching each other's. The wind howled furiously as they neared the depot. Still panting, they looked up at the battered up, wooden building.

It was dilapidated and old, just like what the notice said. Its roof was made out of rusted tins and the entrance doors were falling off its hinges. It wailed sharply in the wind, against Maka's ears, and she winced.

"Ouch! Sheesh," Soul grimaced, sticking his index fingers in his ears, but evened out his expression quickly. "Huh, I suppose you really can't blame its condition. It _is _abandoned."

Creeping quietly against the wooden plaster walls and peeking in one of the falling doors—Maka on her tiptoes with Soul on all fours—they caught sight of multitudes of glowing blue orbs with flickering tails attached above it hovering midair, filling up the empty air within the depot. Maka couldn't help but let out a strangled gasp.

They were unmistakable; souls.

"Oi, Maka, look!" Soul urged and pointed in the distance.

Maka squinted. Thanks to the light the souls emitted, she was able to make out two silhouettes at the far end of the building. She could hear their footsteps shuffling closer to where she and Soul crouched and moved back a step. The two strangers didn't notice. With bated breath, Maka continued to study them. One was russet haired and burly and the other blonde, tall and sinewy. Both were wearing soiled lab coats and turtlenecks.

Something stood out from the thickset man. It looked like a lump or a bundle, but Maka wasn't sure what.

"Soul, can you see what they're carrying?" Maka asked.

"I'm not sure," he replied.

The men reached the rectangular pillar at the center of the room and the taller man fished out a coil of rope from underneath his coat. He grunted something to the burly man and he released his grip on the bundle.

Only it wasn't a bundle; it was a human!

"Did they dig up his body?" Soul cried. "Its no wonder their coats are so filthy!"

"Shush, if you keep talking this loud they'll find us," Maka scolded as she continued observing them.

"Oi, Maka, how are their wavelengths?" Soul asked.

Two colossal different colored orbs appeared within Maka's pan of vision; a dark green one with spikes surrounded the stocky man and a lighter shade, also covered in thick, barbed points, girdled the lean one.

"Both disgorge an oppressing, tyrannizing soul wavelengths," Maka noted aloud. "However, the weapon has a larger propensity to subjugate his victims. The meister has that tiny ounce of altruism in him."

"Altruism, eh?" Soul repeated. Maka could hear the smile in his next words. "Interesting choice of wording. And the boy? Can you sense his?"

The motionless boy was dressed in nothing but a grimy hospital gown ridden to tatters. His skin was extremely pallid, even under the light, and his slick hair was tucked a little too tightly under a fraying beanie, accentuating his hollowed cheekbones. There was a prominent bruise on his forehead.

The taller man then proceeded to tie the boy up against the column. His head hung low and lifeless. Maka wondered if he was breathing at all.

"No," she said. "His wavelength is extremely faint, if not completely perished. But . . . I can sense a fighting spirit. It's indistinct, but it's there."

"He's still striving to live!" Soul exclaimed.

"Shame," the taller man said. There was a certain quality to his voice; contempt, displeasure and disappointment all in one. He reached a finger out and lifted the boy's chin so his face was leveled. His eyelids were sewn shut but he accidentally let a muted groan escape, resulting the man to pitch him a painful slap. "What a waste you turned out to be. We really had such high hopes for you. You were the perfect specimen for this, as far as our research serves us."

"Not so perfect now, is she, Sidney?" the burly man scowled gruffly.

_She?_

"And not to mention," he went on, leaning so close to the girl, their noses actually touched. "She lives. Get on with the ritual already, Jose. I can't bear listening to this little brat conveying oxygen into her lungs any longer."

Jose grunted in consent and Sidney's body projected bright light and transformed into a flail, the spiked ball swaying dangerously on the chain.

"Your time has come to an end, Experiment I3," Jose declared cruelly. "I sincerely hope you enjoyed your pointless life."

Maka drew in her breath sharply. Everything moved in slow motion. Her eyes widened with fear. Fear for the mad men, fear for the girl. "Soul, we have to do something! Soul?"

But he wasn't there.

A familiar scream tore the air, followed by the sound of blade striking against another and the sound of a scythe slashing open skin. Jose let out a deafening roar and lashed out his flail at Soul's face in reflex. He howled and slammed into the girl, who let out a hoarse, throttled yelp.

"Soul!" Maka shouted and rushed for him. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," he said resolutely, circumspectly holding his gashed cheek, and glowered at Jose and Sidney. "But I won't let them make off with another soul that deserves to live."

Jose's lips stretched into a menacing smile. "Fascinating speech, my boy. But I believe your time has come to an end!" The spiked ball came down faster than lightning and both of them barely got out of the way in time.

"Soul!" Maka said loudly in that tone of voice.

"Right!" His body disappeared in a ray of light and Maka twirled the scythe swiftly in her hands, the weight of it making her feel secure.

"What are your names?" Maka demanded.

Jose regarded her scornfully. "We have no intention to give you that, pest!"

_He obviously thinks I'm nothing but small fry. I'll see to that._

"Fine, I'll just go with what I know. Jose, Sidney, your souls are mine!" And with a leap, she raised the scythe above her head and brought it down upon Jose with force, but missed, as he managed to somersault backwards in time before the tip reached him.

"Such straightforward movements and so foreseeable," Jose implied. "Do you really think you would be able to defeat me with that?"

_Straightforward? Foreseeable? Why he—_

"You heard him, Soul!" Maka said. "Let's step up our game. You know what this calls for."

His grinning face appeared on the scythe's black and red pattern.

"Soul Resonance!"

A sudden electric spark flare within Maka's soul, one that she has felt many times before, synchronizing in perfect harmony and rhythm, drawing in each other's souls like a powerful magnet until they collided together with a blaze. Her body shook with power as her scream resonated against the walls like the cry of angels. The tremor sent a blast of courage through her veins.

Soul was beginning to transform as well. His previous red and black blade radiated light and shifted into a crescent moon.

"Witch Hunter!"

Jose smirked with malicious delight. "I'm not technically a witch, but I like this so much better. Sidney, Meteor Hammer!"

The shank and chain thickened and its spiked ball doubled in size. As soon as the alteration was completed, not a second later, he swung it with all his might, aiming it straight at Maka.

She barely managed to dodge it and brandished Soul in front of her in defense. The thick chain wound itself around the haft, the spikes a mere inch away from her fingers.

Commence the tug-of war.

"So s-strong," Maka muttered. Her limbs burned as she struggled to hold up her footing, She didn't dare pull too hard, in fear that the haft would bend and break. She couldn't risk hurting Soul that much.

"AAH!" She couldn't hold it anymore. Her foot gave away and seizing the chance, Jose swooped low and went for a low kick, knocking Maka off her feet and sent her flying backwards into the column.

"Augh!" the girl screeched, her voice dry but loud in Maka's ears.

"Maka!" Soul cried. "We have to release her!"

"On it!" With a deft slash, the ropes fell slack around the girl's ankles and she dropped to the floor, as if her legs had turned to rubber.

"Hey, are you alright?" Maka cried anxiously and desperately. "C-Can you hear me?"

"Nggh . . ." was all the girl could summon out of her cut lips.

"Listen, I'll take care of this man but you must get out of here and go search for help—"

"RRARGH!"

"Maka, look out!"

A rush of wind passed her cheek and she looked up just in time to see the dratted metal ball lunge at her face. She reacted quite boldly and quickly, using the scythe to protect her face as well as the girl.

"R-run," Maka said as she grappled with the enemy weapon. "I'm not sure how I'll be able to keep him at bay. Run!"

"Never!" Jose thundered and struck her stomach with the metal tip of his boot, causing her to vomit blood.

Maka felt her blood boil, a searing rage almost uncontainable within her petite "Why, you bastard! Take this!" She aimed the scythe's extremely curved blade at Jose, but to her shock and disbelief, stopped it with his bare hand and delivered a massive sucker punch to the gut. Wind was knocked out of her in an instant and blood came spewing out of her mouth.

"Maka!" Soul yelled from within the weapon.

"Little girl, do you really a wee little fry like you could defeat me, a mastermind?" Jose said boastfully. "If anything, you'd be a perfect addition to my collection." His footsteps drew nearer as he contemplated on his own words.

"Maka, can you stand?" Soul said, panic radiating through his voice.

Her hands were much too shaky to hold herself up. "N-No."

"On second thought," Jose said, stopping just in front of Maka's face, the metal "I'd rather see your bloody corpse rot on these floors!" He raised his flail again and Maka braced for the worst.

Before she knew it, Soul was on top of her, covering her, protecting her. "Maka!"

_Clang!_

But it wasn't Soul's blade that hit the spiked ball.

"Y-You!" came Jose's horrified voice. He took a step back. Sidney had changed back to his human form and was doing the same. "How could—"

Maka slowly lifted her head, but was instantly taken aback by what she was currently witnessing.

"I-Is that . . ." Soul fumbled with his words.

The sound of a scuffle commenced. The girl moved in lightning speed at the two men who had tortured and threatened to murder her. Her fingers are stiletto knives, scratching maniacally at their chests. She was barefooted, yet her feet looked as if they were made from steel. How she kicked and thwarted them all the way to the end of the building.

And her eyes . . . bloodlust.

"A-Amazing," Soul faltered.

"So," Sidney said brusquely, wiping his bloodied lower lip, flicking the red with his thumb, "all it takes for you to wake up was a swift kick to the gut, eh?"

The girl didn't say a word. Her eyes were locked on target, focused and intense. If looks could kill, Jose and Sidney would be nothing but a pile of ash.

"HRARGH!" the girl let out a shriek and charged. Her fingers became pointier, more vicious, and she raked at their flesh, drawing blood.

"Good thing we brought backup," Jose sneered and drew out a pistol. He wasted no time pulling the trigger. Bullets hit her square in the knees and shoulders.

"NO!" Maka screamed and stood up, indignant and troubled. "Soul!"

"Right." Scythe in hand, Maka raced forward, determined to lend the girl a hand.

Until she stopped her.

"No," the girl said darkly. Much to everyone's surprise, her voice was no longer husky. "This is my battle."

Then Maka saw it; her wavelength.

It was dour grey but it illuminated dazzling beams of light, like strobe lights. Something abnormal stirred within it, but Maka wasn't quite sure what it was. All she knew was that this girl was divergent.

Extending her arm, the girl's skin tore at the wrist and thin straps of leather wound itself around the fresh wound with a compact blade attached to it like a slingshot. Before Maka could ask, or even begin to comprehend its actuality, the blade whizzed forward and grazed Sidney at the neck.

"AAARGH!"

More blades zoomed out of the simple yet intricate implement, each one passing by in a dark flash and each one hitting the enemies on any vital area in the body. Maka could only stand there and watches the battle unravel before her, unable to move a single muscle, wide-eyed, open mouthed and awestruck.

_J-Just what is she? How could she produce so many blades inside her body, in just one go?_

Then a horrifying thought struck her. _C-Could it be black blood?_

She stared down at the blood dripping from the girl's knees. They're already dried, but they were most certainly red.

_H-How could it? What is she?! Her wavelength is swelling!_

"YYAAAAHHH!" In one final cry, the girl lifted both fists and thrusted them hard into their chest. A blinding white light appeared and the two men were shot back onto the back lot of the depot.

"She just shot them her wavelength, didn't she?" Soul asked, utterly mesmerized.

"I would like to think she did," Maka said just as breathlessly.

The two men stared agape at the girl, eyes burning, through the giant hole in the wall she created. And ran off.

"Hey, don't let them get away!" Maka cried, and yet the girl stopped her again.

"Leave them be," she said mysteriously. "They have no further use of me anyway." She turned to face Maka. "Nor you."

Maka was speechless. Never in thirteen years of her life had she seen anything quite like that. She could hardly even breathe.

"W-What are you?" Maka said, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Me?" she said. Her voice was low now. "I'm Experiment I3."

"I'm s-sorry?"

"I said, my name is Experiment I3—YAAARRGHH!"

Her body was suddenly enveloped in a massive amount of electricity. It hurt to even stand next to her. Her limbs twisted in askew angles, however miraculously they didn't break.

Then the electricity died down and the girl collapsed.

"Ah, hey!" Maka kneeled next to the girl and shook her awake, but to no avail. "Hey, wake up! Are you hurt? Wake up!"

"It's no use, Maka," Soul said,. "She's fought a ferocious battle and is probably just worn out. The best we could do is take her back to Shibusen."

"Back to Shibusen?" Maka echoed. "But what about Professor Stein? And Shinigami-sama?"

"We'll figure something out later. Right now, I'm worried about her."

Maka nodded. "Yeah. Should we at least contact Shinigami-sama and report?"

"It would be best, but I see no mirrors or windows around. I suppose it'll have to wait."

"Right." They both proceeded to carry the girl on their shoulders.

A deafening roar of engine suddenly pierced the air and a huge gust of wind blew around them. Then a helicopter came into sight.

"Damn it, they had a helicopter?" Soul groaned, curling his fists.

"Never mind that," Maka said. "We'll take her advice and leave them be. Although, I have a feeling we should've gotten rid of them while we had the chance."

"Same here, Maka. Same here."

As soon as they were safely hidden beyond the clouds, Jose reached for the transceiver and radioed someone on the other end.

"What now?" a rough voice said immediately after a connection was established.

"Unfortunate news," Jose said despondently. "We failed to make off with our hundredth soul."

"WHAT?! HOW COULD THAT BE?!E EXPLAIN YOURSELVES! WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS GIBBERISH!?" The booming voice nearly made Sidney steer off course and crash a nearby roof.

"We may have failed to acquire the hundredth human soul, Boss, but we did, however, procure the Catalyst."

"Ho, is that so?" The Boss was incredulous. "How so?"

"Her powers reach beyond the regulated limits, sir," Jose responded. "Far beyond our expectations."

"There are still adjustments to be made in her," Sidney added. "But I assure you will be quite pleased with our current results."

The line on the other end was silent.

"So be it," the Boss said. "I shall discharge all the other specimens, but I won't believe another word you say until you can bring in this so-called catalyst to me. Understood?"

"Roger," they responded simultaneously. Then the line went static.

Jose sighed and settled into the cockpit, a devilish grin playing on his lips. "Brace yourself, Sidney. She may be the perfect specimen after all."


	2. Ivy

**MAJOR EDITS APPLIED!**

**- Anya.**

* * *

**Chapter 2 – Ivy**

"Nygus, how is her condition?" Maka asked in the dispensary the next day.

"Well, her pulse is a little unstable and her body is fatigued from lack of sleep and water, but apart from that, everything seems to be normal," she replied.

"Nothing . . . out of the ordinary?"

"We'll find out more when she's conscious."

"What about her blood?"

"I'm not able to check her blood pressure when she's asleep, Maka."

That wasn't what she wanted to know, but she dismissed it. "I see."

"I'll send Professor Stein for details on her condition," she said, softer this time. Maka smiled aprreciatively.

"Say, Maka, what did you say her name was?"

"Uh, I'm not sure. I think she said it was Ivy."

"Ivy, hm." Nygus jotted that down on the clipboard. "So what exactly happened yesterday? Did the mission end well?"

"Uhm, to be honest," Maka said, sitting on the edge of the bed. "We neither lost nor won."

"Hm?"

She then began to explain last night's happenings. Nygus took a seat on the swivel chair, crossed a leg over the other, and listened intently.

"Sounds very hectic out there," she remarked when Maka was done.

"You can say that again," Maka said and turned to am insentient Ivy. Her face was sickly pale to the point of yellowish green, making the contusion stand out more. She was also dressed in a cleaner hospital robe, provided by Nygus. "When do you think she'll wake?"

"At the very least, later this evening or tomorrow," Nygus said. "I will let you know as soon as that happens. You should get to class now."

"Right." Maka stood up to leave and waved. "Thanks, Nygus."

As soon as she was walking the hallways on her own, thoughts from the previous night, ones she had tried so hard to set aside when she slept at night, came flooding back to her mind. She couldn't make any heads or tails of anything. Nothing made sense and none of the pieces fit.

_Ivy . . . Just what exactly are you made of? Are you human? Are you a freak of nature? Is your blood black . . . or red? No, I distinctly saw it was red. But it was dried. Or was it? It was red! But it could be black. How else was she able to create those weapons straight of her flesh? A science experiment gone fatally wrong?_

_ Wrong? If anything, that experiment was an accidental success, even if it was for a horribly wrong reason, whatever it was._

_ Experiment? Ivy said something about an experiment, and so did Jose and Sidney. Was she an experiment? Some kind of helpless lab rat? Was she dissected and had those blades stored between her organs? Sheesh, I sound so much like Professor Stein. And not to mention that sounds really gross and impossible. I really can't imagine anyone dissecting people other than Stein._

_ Medusa._

_If there was anyone capable of fabricating this preposterous scheme and stooping this low to disarrange the human race, she would be first on our list. But she's dead. And Crona is with us. Does that mean . . . she has another unidentified successor?_

_But who?_

"Oof!" Maka bumped into someone going in the opposite direction.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Maka. I wasn't looking," a soft, kind voice said.

"Tsubaki," Maka exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"BlackStar's gone missing again," Tsubaki said with a sheepish smile. "And Professor Stein is out of the class, so I took the chance."

Maka folded her arms across her chest and grinned form ear-to-ear. "Rebelling, are we, Tsubaki?"

Tsubaki chuckled, a playful hangdog appearance written all over her face in red. "I-I can't find him anywhere."

Still smiling, Maka put a finger to her chin and thought of the places BlackStar could be. "Have you checked Shibusen's front yard?"

"I was heading there before I bumped into you," Tsubaki replied. All of a sudden, there came a crash and an ear-splitting shout.

"YAAAARRGGGHHH!"

"Speak of the devil," Maka mumbled. "Let's go, Tsubaki!"

"Right."

They dashed towards the school's front courtyard and found a blue, towering tattooed figure, Sid, staring straight ahead at an unfolding, brazen brawl, his expression unreadable. Maka immediately caught glimpse of spiky blue hair and flailing fists that didn't belong to Black Star amongst the clash.

_Who's he fighting this time?_

No sooner than three seconds later, she got her answer.

A boy with dark hair and signature three, white streaks on the side of his head emerged from the dust, clutching two handguns upside down.

"Kid?" Tsubaki exclaimed.

"Good duel, wasn't it?" he said, much to Tsubaki's confusion.

But he wasn't talking to her, but a beaming BlackStar.

"Good? Next time we do this, I'll finish you off for sure!" he bellowed at the top of his lungs.

"I'd love to see you try, BlackStar. I'll be looking forward to our next duel," Kid smirked and dashed away, presumably to class.

"Eventful day, wouldn't you say, Maka?" Sid said, ignoring Kid. Maka, slightly taken aback, nodded feverishly.

"It's only morning, though," she added.

"Sid!" a female voice called from above. It was Nygus; she was calling from the dispensary window. "Could you come up here? There's something I want to talk to you about."

"In a minute!" Sid shouted and turned to face Maka, who looked at him expectantly. "I trust you can handle these troublemakers?"

"I, uh, you can count on me?" she said, unassertive, but Sid had took off for the stairways.

_What does Nygus want with Sid? Don't tell me she's going to tell him all about Ivy! What if she knows something, but isn't willing to tell me? Why so secretive? It's not like I'm going to blabber it to everyone at Shibusen!_

A clap on her back made Maka jump. "What're ya muttering about?" BlackStar said brusquely.

"N-Nothing," she stuttered, still quite startled. Did she really say her words aloud? _I hope BlackStar doesn't question me._

He didn't; he simply shrugged and walked away. "You know you can tell me anything, right, Maka?" he called over his shoulder.

"Ah, yeah."

Only she wasn't sure how to put it into the right words.

Later on in class, while Stein was yet again preaching the students on dissecting another innocent creature, Maka couldn't concentrate at all. Her thoughts kept lingering away to Ivy. How was her condition? What was in her blood? Was it black or red? And whenever Soul tried to reach out for her, she would always dismiss him with a despondent grunt.

The whole day passed by in a transitional blur, moving form one dull, boring class to another. The whole day, Maka couldn't take her mind off Ivy. She couldn't stop wondering of what she was or what she might be or what else she capable of. She didn't want to be pestered with these thoughts, but she could hardly help it. Her burning curiosity was overwhelming. She had to find out what Ivy was.

Then, finally . . .

"Oi, Maka," Soul said, snapping her out of reverie. "School is over. Do you want to head home?"

"No," she immediately replied, stood up and grabbed her books. "I-I mean, there's something I need to check up on first."

"Sure, cool. I'll just prepare the curry then. See you later." Soul gave a flick of his hand as a wave and sauntered out, leaving Maka alone with her thoughts.

Maka rushed straight to the dispensary and as soon as she opened the door, Professor Stein was talking to Ivy, who was now conscious but still looked dead tired. Her shoulders are slumped forward, as if she was carrying the weight of the world on her back and dark bags cradled her dull blue eyes which seem to sink into her skull.

"Ah, Maka," Stein said when he heard her approach. "Just the person I wanted to see."

Maka approached Professor Stein cautiously, her eyes flickering over to him to Ivy, who paid no attention to her—Maka saw her eyes were a deep indigo and empty—, to a waiting Nygus, then back to Stein. "Yes?"

"Ivy," Stein said, waving a hand in front of the blank, pallid girl to get her attention. "This here is Maka. She rescued you last night, along with her partner, Soul. You remember her, yes?"

Ivy looked up slowly. "Yeah."

The ardent girl she witnessed yesterday was gone, and was replaced by a drone. Maka was extremely astonished by this.

"Nygus told me what you told her, Maka," Professor Stein said. "And I think she might've been undergoing extreme experimental procedures."

Maka nodded. "So, uh, how's she doing?"

"She seems to be doing fine, other than her ridiculously large bruise. She's malnourished and dehydrated, but feed her lots, and she'll be back in shape in no time. Also, Nygus told me you were concerned about her blood."

Maka's eyes lit up. "Yes." She lowered her voice and ushered him to a secluded corner of the dispensary. "Yesterday, while Soul and I were fighting off Ivy's attackers, she started pelleting them with various blades, all of them made out of her own blood! There was one time her skin ripped apart on its own and this little contraption appeared out of her flesh, like she did it with her own mind! Mind control, or something like that—"

"And you began to wonder if black blood had infiltrated her body."

Maka stopped short. "Y-Yes."

"I performed a blood test on her earlier," Professor Stein explained. "Her blood is evidently red but an extensive range of chemicals have been . . . injected into her bloodstream. It will take some time for me to identify each and every single one of them because so many of them have already mixed with her red blood cells. I don't know what those chemicals contain, but I can tell you fore sure they are not certified. It seemed like the two doctors you encountered yesterday made these substances all on their own, for their own purposes."

It was a lengthy explanation, but Maka understood every word. "So, what do you propose we do?"

"I propose you take her home to your apartment for the time being. Make her feel at home. She's very confused and disoriented. She has no idea where she is or what she's doing here. Which reminds me—" Professor Stein lowered his voice. "She seems to be suffering acute memory loss."

"What?!"

"Is it really that much of a shocking news, Maka? This girl has been experimented on for who knows how many years, administered with various chemicals and potions and whatnot all her life. It's only natural her memory gets scrambled in the process, and maybe some of her internal organs, too."

"Oh God . . ." Maka suddenly felt weak in the knees.

"But don't worry, Maka. If she questions nothing about the past, then don't bring it up in front of her. Save us the trouble for now. We'll deal with that as soon as we figure out what's been slipped inside her, okay?"

"But, Professor, what about the others? BlackStar? Kid? Tsubaki? Liz and Patti? How will I explain her to _them_? Surely, they'll ask lots of quest—"

"Then answer them, but answer them minimally. We don't want too much unwanted, unknown information spilling out. Tell them the entire story when Ivy is out of earshot, also as nominal as possible. It's also best to bring her home now, too.

"Look at Ivy now. She's been going in and out of consciousness for the past half hour. The procaine we gave her will wear off in a few hours, but even then, she won't bother listening to a word any of us are saying. I tried talking to her before I injected the procaine, but it was as if her mind is visiting some distant planet. See how Nygus is trying to entertain her so that she stays awake until she can get home? That's how much focus she has left inside her."

"I see," Maka said, even though she doesn't quite see Stein's point. "Is that all, Professor?"

"Don't do or say anything that would provoke her; hopefully you'll find out what they are intime. Psychologically, her emotions are unstable and her heart is fragile. Anything too wild or rambunctious would accelerate and harden her blood flow and would awaken the weapon stream. She could do some serious damage to Shibusen students. And I don't think people are going to be too pleased with her presence. They might find her suspicious. I think for the time being, her biggest enemy is BlackStar, if not the scientists, because you know how he feels about attention."

Professor Stein pushed up his glasses. "Yes, that should do for now. I'll let you know as soon as I find a breakthrough." They returned to the bed where Nygus is intensely poking and prodding Ivy's cheeks.

"Getting a little desperate, Nygus?" Professor Stein said with a small smile. Nygus jumped up in surprise.

"About time," she groaned. "Not that I have anything against Ivy. Oh well. Maka, she's all yours. You better get going soon; the sky is darkening."

"Oh, and Maka," Professor Stein added. "I suggest you lend her some of your clothes. She can't go around town in a hospital gown forever."

"Right, of course. Leave it to me. Thank you. Come on, Ivy."

Ivy stood up, her thin legs barely supporting her as they walked out of the dispensary and out to the empty streets of Death City, but she had refused Maka's help when she offered a shoulder.

It was a quiet journey home. Maka gripped the hem of her shirt and smoothed down her skirt and twiddled her fingers as she racked her brains for a good conversation starter. Every time she came up with a good one, she would then promptly be reminded of Ivy's lack of memory and had to think hard for another one.

And the cycle repeated itself for three-fourths of the trip, until Ivy finally spoke up, her voice clearer now, but still evidently sleepy.

"Where are we going?"

"My apartment," Maka said. "Just up the street."

"Oh."

Then it was back to silence.

Maka sighed internally. She wished the situation wasn't so awkward. She began to daydream about how it would be like if she and Ivy were best friends; sharing secrets, hushed conversations about boys and making fun of them, swap their favorite books and read them together over the weekends, cry over mind-tripping plot twists, have study dates in Deathbucks Café, look back on inside jokes . . .

_It could be fun, _Maka thought, starry eyed.

And before she knew it, they had arrived at the front door of Room 506.

"Here we are," Maka said. "This is your new home."

"Oh. Will I live here alone?"

"Uh, no. You'll be staying with Soul and me. You remember him?"

"I . . . guess."

_Memory loss, Maka. Dammit!_

"Don't worry. I'm sure you two will get along just fine," Maka said, smiling, and twisted the doorknob.

It was empty and all the lights are switched off; Soul must've gone to bed already. That was early of him.

"So, um, here's my room," Maka said, pushing open the door. "You can sleep here for the night, or for the rest of the nights, until we find a room for you."

Ivy nodded and slinked inside without a word. She was already dead on her feet and Maka shut the door gently. It was the couch for her tonight.

The door opened just a crack. "Maka?"

"Yeah?"

"Is my name _really _Ivy?"

Maka was a little perplexed, but said, "Yes. You told me yesterday."

"I did?"

_Does this have anything to do with her acute memory loss? Can she really forget her own name? Or even not remember giving anyone her name?_

"Oh," she said absentmindedly. "I was sure my name was something else." Then she shut the door, leaving Maka with very confused thoughts.


End file.
